St Ambrose College of Education to close down?
The St Ambrose College of Education at Dormaa Akwamu in the Dormaa East District in the Brong-Ahafo Region is likely to be closed down for the next academic year if efforts to receive financial clearance from the Ministry of Finance for the payment of salaries of both the teaching and non-teaching staff of the college do not yield positive results.
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The college, which was established by the Catholic Diocese in 2009, became a public college of education in 2015 as part of the government’s decision to absorb five colleges of education in the country.
After that absorption, the college has been abandoned as salaries of tutors and other financial commitments from the government to the college have been neglected.
The college has been suffering financially since 2015 despite several meetings and efforts by its authorities with other key stakeholders, including the leadership of National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE) to get the problem solved.
The payment of salaries to both teaching and non-teaching staff through its limited internally generated fund (IGF) has reached unsustainable limit.
It is against this backdrop that the fate of about 400 teacher trainees of the college is uncertain as the students have been directed by the authorities of the college to pay tuition and utility fees in a bid to keep it running with effect from next academic year.
NTCE
Confirming the plight of the college, the Executive Secretary of the NCTE, Professor Mohammed Salifu, said the college submitted its request to the NCTE, “and we forwarded it to the Ministry of Finance for clearance.”
He said the financial clearance was supposed to have been effected for the 2016/17 academic year because their request was factored into the budget.
Prof. Salifu said unfortunately, the Ministry of Finance was yet to clear them, describing the situation as frustrating.
He expressed concern that the current demand that any staff of a tertiary institution, irrespective of whether that person was being replaced or a new entrant required financial clearance from the ministry was frustrating; citing for instance, that all newly recruited rectors of the colleges of education outside the Ministry of Education payroll were still awaiting clearance.
Strike
A statement signed by the President of the Students Representative Council (SRC), Mr Owusu Baah Thompson, said the staff of the college had threatened to go on strike in the next academic year, which might have an adverse effect on their academic performance.
It revealed that feeding of the students was now a problem, emphasising that the college authority was trying its best to keep the institution running.
The statement explained that the little money that the college got from its IGF was always used to pay salaries.
It said the college had resolved to close down or charge the students tuition and utility fees as the last option.
“It is in this regard that we the students of the college treat this matter with all exigencies it deserves, since the University of Cape Coast (UCC) will not in any manner consider us during the end of semester examination,” the statement stated.
The statement added that the SRC had drawn the attention of the government for the problem to be addressed to avert the looming industrial strike by staff of the college which, according to them, would derail their studies and examinations.
It said the only concrete material that one could use to find out whether the college was a public institution was a 32-seater “Eicher” bus and a Navara pickup.
“It is in this regard that we the SRC and the entire student body of the college feel disowned by the key stakeholders, even though it is on record that the college was a public college of education,” the statement added.
